Whatcha gonna name the baby? Aidan, Jaden or Caden?

No, don't get excited...no one in my family is having a baby (that I know of!), and my days of doing that are certainly long gone. But I've always, ever since I can remember, been fascinated with names--their meanings, their origins, just the way they sound.

So I was interested in article on Netscape.com about baby naming trends. According to the article: "For the first time in more than a decade, the year's most popular baby name for boys is not Biblical. Move over Michael and Matthew and make room for Aidan, Jaden, and Caden--the top three boys' names for 2003."

Madison has hung on as the number one name for baby girls. (I actually have an adorable little niece named Madison Marie.) Apparently, it was first used as a girl's name in the 1984 movie "Splash," in which Daryl Hannah played a mermaid. Remember, when she gets her legs and goes walking in Manhattan, she looks up to a Madison Avenue street sign and decides that will be her name?

Being a Celtic-phile...a lover of all things Irish, Scottish, etc...I must say I like the trend toward Celtic names. I just like the way they sound. I'm not sure if the shift away from Biblical names signifies anything...probably, if we wait long enough, the pendulum will swing back.

As far as the naming of my own children goes...well, I've known since I was a little girl that I wanted a "Jonathan" and an "Elizabeth." I always liked the name "Justin" as well. And when I was first expecting Justin, I was visiting my parents in Austin, and frequently saw a "Justin" street. I thought the name looked and sounded cool.

I do like the fact that my kids' names aren't really trendy. I think they'll stand the test of time. "Elizabeth" will sound just as good when my daughter is an old lady as it does now, at 16.

Although, I wish she would use her real name more and shorten it to "Liz" a little less. :)

By the way, if you want to do a little more baby name research, you may want to visit www.babynames.com. And if you have good reason to do so, well, congratulations! :)

BRRRR!!!!

Just got an e-mail from Tina, who lives in Central New York. She tells me that the wind chill there this morning is 101 degrees below zero! That is just CRAZY cold. You'd think that just walking outdoors there would turn you into a block of ice. Stay warm, Tina!